For techies with an interest in education, or educators interested in technology, MIT is launching a series of free Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) on education technology and game design.
Eric Klopfer, a member of SFI’s Science Board and director of MIT’s teacher education program, is hosting the new series of MOOCs, which launched October 10 with a project-based course on designing and developing educational technology. The four-course series will continue with game design, October 22, and two future courses on educational games and implementing ed tech.
Unlike the majority of MOOCs, the series requires group-based work and weekly participation. It aims to provide course participants the tools they need to create a saleable product. In USA Today’s article on the new series, Klopfer is quoted: "What we’d like to get out of it is some great, interesting ideas that maybe some people move forward with.?
Klopfer created the iconic StarLogo platform that allows middle school students and teachers to program their own simulations of complex systems. The free program is used by complex systems enthusiasts, and in middle schools nationwide through SFI’s afterschool science program Project GUTS.
Read the article in USA Today (October 10, 2014)
Sign up for the MOOC on MIT’s edX website